Barbiano Plum Weeks

Plums have been grown and harvested since the Middle Ages in Barbiano, the village with the famous leaning church tower. Until recently, the fruit was an important export commodity - today, it is valued for its properties: It is rich in provitamin A, B vitamins, potassium, and trace elements. It stimulates the metabolism and strengthens resilience against stress and low moods.

The "Barbiano plum" (Barbianer Zwetschke) also has a high sorbitol content which is considered a sugar substitute and occurs naturally here. The fruit is celebrated, enjoyed, and honoured especially during the Barbiano Plum Weeks, or Barbianer Zwetschkenwochen, between late August and mid-September. Local businesses work together in this regard: Hospitality establishments serve delicious dishes based on the fruit, including duck breast with plum sauce or risotto with the "Barbiano plum". You can buy plum bread and jam in the shops.

In addition, there are guided plum excursions through the surrounding nature and, to conclude, the traditional Barbiano Plum Festival at the festival ground in Barbiano. There you will find plenty of delicacies made from and with the blue fruit, accompanied by live music. Barbiano even has its own Barbiano Plum Trail, which you can walk all year round, but which is naturally particularly impressive in early spring during the plum blossom and in autumn at harvest time.

The trail is easy to walk and four kilometres long: It leads you from the village square towards the lower village as far as the Wetterkreuz. Afterwards, it goes uphill to a fork in the path and from there continues to the right, returning through the upper village of Barbiano to the starting point.